Meet Marc & Cèlia

This instalment of In the Atelier With features Marc & Cèlia, a couple who run a wonderful online shop, Antic & Chic, as well as a studio in Girona, Spain. Antic & Chic first began as a blog about eight years ago, but the couple would later add an online shop for furniture and homewares, about three years ago. Marc is the son of a cabinetmaker and Cèlia is an artist, and together they had wanted to do something that expressed these creative sides of themselves, despite both having studied biology.

The couple now spend their time finding and transforming furniture, offering interior design services, as well as online courses and in-person workshops at their studio, which is only five minutes away from their home. In addition to online sites, their searches for furniture to transform often also lead them to thrift stores, flea markets and fairs, usually in France and Portugal.

The couple recently transformed a chest of drawers for us, a beautiful custom piece that we absolutely ADORE. White and GOLD and topped with Carrara, it is one of our favourite things at home. Below, in their own words, Marc & Cèlia take us through the process, from start to finish, of completely making over an old piece of furniture and turning it into a modern work of art…

“At the A&C studio, we create exclusive and unique pieces from old and antique furniture which we recover, by hand, always looking for the highest quality and beauty in their finishes. We are Marc and Cèlia, husband and wife, and we created Antic & Chic nearly three years ago, as a way to turn our passion for decorating into our job.

And this was the work we did on a chest of drawers for This Is Glamorous, a special custom piece for Roséline. Depending on the type of project that our clients seek, we start by searching for the most appropriate piece. For this reason, we have an important contact network to help us find these pieces, and we also visit flea markets, thrift stores, etc.

In this case, we found the piece in a thrift store, took a picture and sent it to Roséline with a general description, such as measurements, etc. Then, when she gave us the OK, we discussed the finishes she wanted.

The next step was to acquire the piece and start our work in the studio, first ensuring that drawers function properly and adjust them if necessary, because its functionality is key to enjoying its beauty.”

“We began by carefully inspecting the piece, looking for damages, strokes, dings, scratches, etc., and fix, if necessary, using putty for wood, and sandpaper. Sanding the wood is an important step, as it corrects any imperfections and ensures an optimum paint adherence.

Next, we applied a hard primer to create high friction and resistance.

An important thing to note is that at Antic & Chic, we use only acrylic enamels–that is, water-based paints–and always try to use the most eco-friendly and high-quality products we can.

Although we like a very fine finish, we rarely use a paint gun, because we love painting. Therefore, normally we apply paints with superfine brushes, or a roller, and we always sand between layers. The final result is a smooth layer, with no hard paint strokes, but with a handmade finish.”

“And this was the result: an exclusive and unique piece of furniture, customised for Roséline. It is a piece with history and character, one in which we have taken into account every little detail to achieve a personalised piece that reflects the character of This is Glamorous.”

“Our furniture makeovers always include a multitude of possibilities: gold leaf applications, ‘decape’, ‘dip-dye’, personalised hardware, etc. In this case, for this chest of drawers, we painted the legs and the base with GOLD paint made from metal particles. To protect it, we used shellac and high-resistant varnish.”

“Next, we proposed a variety of high quality wallpapers for finishing of the bottom of the drawers.”

“For a higher quality finish, in this case, there was a marble countertop to which we applied a special product for marbles to give it protection and shine. Finally, we assembled the piece (drawers and marble), and applied some parafin under the drawers to reduce friction and improve their functioning.” —Marc & Cèlia

Antic & Chic

Above & left: A glimpse of Marc & Cèlia’s bright and airy home, located in the Barrio de Sant Narcís, in Girona, Spain, which they share with their two dogs and cat. The space was recently featured at houzz — click here for more images.